Archive for December, 2012

A little over a year ago, I prayed and asked God to enlarge my territory. Shortly after I became an official member of Mic Check 1-Two! My adventure with Mic Check 1-Two has been just that, an adventure.

Lana and I first connected spirits when she interviewed my father for a documentary. Coming into contact with young black women with similar visions is like finding a diamond in a rough. We shared the vision of unlocking the truths about our community, and educating our community on those truths. We each had the innate desire to encourage, support, and help our communities to use their voice as an agent for change. Needless to say, we connected instantaneously.

Through Lana, I was introduced to Latiaynna, and the same thing happened! Our spirits linked and a beautiful friendship was born.

When they decided to put on the panel discussion on The Portrayal of the African American Woman in the Entertainment Industry, I was thrilled to support! I mean how could I not support my friends in their endeavors to hold a discussion on something I too am extremely passionate about?

The InterCommunal Giveback Feast & Concert is an annual year-end FREE event that travels each year to different under-served Philadelphia communities, offering a hot meal, gently-used clothing, non-perishable food items, and an evening of entertainment for community members.(more…)

I have been sitting here at the computer for at least twenty minutes before I could begin this post. A review of Mic Check 1-Two!’s first year in operation sounded like a rather daunting task considering all that we’ve been blessed to do this year. I have to give thanks to God for making ALL things possible!

As Latiaynna mentioned in her personal review, we had only started out to host one panel discussion. We were fed up with how black women were being portrayed in the media and we wanted to gather people together to TALK about it– not tweet about, or text about it, but to TALK about it. Sounds simple enough, right? My testimony is proof that when God is up to something, it’s best that you just sit back and stay out of His way.

We began planning our first panel discussion: The Portrayal of the African American Woman in the Entertainment Industry, in August of 2011. It was also during this time that my grandfather and best friend became gravely ill. His condition worsened between fall and the end of the year and he passed away on November 30, 2011. His funeral was one day before our event. This was a very difficult time for me because although I wanted to be with family and continue grieving, I didn’t want to let anyone down that had helped us with or had been looking forward to our event. I had planned on rescheduling the event but my family encouraged me not to do so. They knew that my grandfather would never want me to postpone anything on his account. He was a man of great character and believed that helping people and remaining humble were key principles. With that, we decided to go forward and get ready for the event.

Our event was a success! People were energized and support was coming to us in every direction. We received countless emails and comments from different people in anticipation of our next event.

Although establishing a community organization was not our original intent, Latiaynna and I were excited about what God had in store for us so we accepted the blessing, and the challenge and began planning.

The organizers (R. Lambert, L.Tabb, P. Fullard, & L. Adams) of The InterCommunal Giveback Feast & Concert needs YOUR help to purchase food, print materials, and equipment for a community feast and clothing drive that they are bringing to the Allegheny-West community. The InterCommunal Giveback Feast & Concert is an annual year-end free event that travels each year to different under-served Philadelphia communities, offering a hot meal, gently-used clothing, non-perishable food items, and an evening of entertainment for community members.

Don’t have any used clothes to donate? Fresh out of canned food to give? That’s okay! You can make a tax-deductible donation to our 2012 Intercommunal Giveback Event by clicking the link below!

Your donation will help to make this event special for all of our guests by providing them with food and resources for healthy living.